29/52 + a new addition.

This kitten joined us this afternoon from the animal shelter. Yesterday, we visited since we had to pass it in order to pick up a dress I had hemmed. The shelter was right there so we figured why not stop in? Well… in true cat lover's fashion once seeing all the adorable felines we couldn't just leave. So we talked to the volunteers there, all of whom remembered us from last year and remembered Artemis by name (though they knew her as Rainbow). They told us how nice we are and how amazing we are as pet parents. We looked at a few cats. But the little guy above just took our hearts. From the minute Sean picked him up he began to purr. We went home to think things over -- but found ourselves at the shelter this morning before it opened. We just had to add him to our home. He's all of two pounds and 10 weeks old. He had many siblings all of whom have been adopted in the last two weeks since they've been available to go to homes but this little guy was left behind due to his all black coat. Even his whiskers are black. Apparently there's a bunch of superstitious people around here. He's gentle and spunky and fearless. His transition into "his" bedroom was seamless and he bounced right out of the carrier and has been napping in "his" twin sized bed, playing with his new toys, and eating and drinking all afternoon. We are following the same transitional period that we did when introducing Apollo to Artemis so the girls haven't truly seen him. We don't think Apollo knows he's in the house since she spends most of her time in the sun room downstairs but Artemis knows something is going on and may have seen a glimpse but she doesn't seem phased. The real test will be if they hear him moving around in the middle of the night.  

We call him Atlas.

And yes, three is a good number and we are done adopting.

Our family photo shoot.

This week, on Wednesday, we celebrated our three year wedding anniversary. Like our first anniversary and our second anniversary we wanted to capture a family photo. Sean was positive that it wouldn't be successful and I was as hopeful as I've been in the past. His prediction was totally correct and I was left very disappointed. But we ended with some funny pictures, scratches all over our bodies  and the realization that three times is not a "charm". First let's remember our photos from the last two years.

I actually was really upset over our 2013 photo because the cats weren't still or looking at the camera. Little did I know that picture was a huge accomplishment compared to what happened this year. First of all, Apollo lets us pick her up -- but for a short amount of time. Artemis does not allow us to pick her up -- ever. Also, Apollo can be swayed, for a few minutes, with treats. Artemis is interested in things for a couple minutes if her toys are around. Let's take a look at some of these photos. PS, we should totally be sponsored by Friskies. 

We don't have a remote for our camera so even though we have a timer we have to move to the camera for every shot. We took pictures for an hour. And every time we moved Artemis would run out of the room and we'd have to start the whole "it's okay" thing over again. We're building confidence over here. Apollo is better at taking pictures. Until she's "done" -- as seen in one picture below. 

Artemis is a mover. She kept moving out of the frame of the lens. And each time I said "well that would have been good if she was in it". She rarely was. Another thing -- she kept walking towards the camera and then it would fall out of focus. See blurry pictures above. After 30 minutes, we needed a break so we started taking pictures of both of them. 

We really did our best. Unfortunately "our best" still was only their backs most of the time. But eventually they started to check out. You can only keep two cats, who only sometimes get along with each other, in one room for so long. 

So finally… this is what we settled with -- us hunched over, neither cat looking, Sean holding Apollo in place and me bribing Artemis with some treats.

A life update.

There's not much to report on other than home buying which has taken up our lives since my last blog update. We didn't realize the process of buying a house was so long or unpredictable. There's a lot of stuff that HGTV doesn't show you from the time the buyer's offer is accepted to when they actually move in. It's really stressful. This waiting time could possibly be the most stressful time we've experienced individually or together. We've written checks for amounts of money I have never seen in my life. We've given the same documents a number of times to the bank and they always "can't find it" when we're both at work and not able to send it over (for the fifth time). Something falls into place in one area and then completely falls apart in another. During the last 3.5 weeks we've asked for and accepted things from people that we never thought we would have to. We've let go of pride and cried and then laughed at the ridiculousness of it all. We've spent days imagining a life in this new house complete with paint colors and new furniture and then spent the next few days separating ourselves from the house "just in case". It's still all so uncertain -- and with just four more days before our mortgage commitment deadline, it's not a great feeling.

When we're not completely overwhelmed, which is never by the way; we're working, cooking, cleaning, food shopping, doing laundry, planning for the holidays, contemplating packing, breaking our apartment lease (ah!), taking our Christmas pictures, going to concerts, browsing home improvement stores, hanging out with friends, going out to eat, watching movies, keeping up with DVR, being sick with strep throat/sinus infection/ear infection (that's me), brewing beer (that's him) and cuddling with the cats.

My vision for our Christmas card picture this year and the reality of getting two cats in a picture with us didn't quite mesh. But here's a sneak peek... don't you just love this time of year?

Artemis is one!

Over the weekend, we celebrated Artemis' first birthday. When we brought her home from the shelter they had mentioned they believed she would be turning one around September 1st. I guess they can tell that? Who knew? I'd like to think that the last five months with us, were much better than her six months without a home, and one month at the shelter. If you're thinking of adopting, I'd urge you to check out an animal shelter before deciding it's not for you. Five months ago, when we wanted to get another cat -- we went the shelter route because it was sort of our only option. For Apollo, our friend's cat had kittens and he was trying to give them all away. It was easy. A few months later, no one we knew had kittens to give away and it just seemed like a very normal thing to do to stop in at our local humane society. Sean started looking on their website, and saw Artemis immediately. Her name was Rainbow at the time, she looked all scraggly, and she definitely looked afraid. But we knew we had to have her. We called them, they said we could come look at her but that she wasn't ready to leave the shelter quite yet, we started visiting daily, and after a few days we got to bring her home... and now we're celebrating her b-day!  

We liked working with the animal shelter for a couple of reasons:

1. Health: At least around us, shelters make sure that animals have their shots and vaccinations. They also spay or neuter the animal. If the animal is sick, they keep a close eye on him or her and don't let them leave the shelter until they're well. Once you bring the pet home, they encourage you to take the animal to your own vet -- but technically, I guess you wouldn't have to. (Although, we did and everything checked out well). 

2. Wealth: Because the animals come to you all vaccinated and baby-less, you don't have to take them to the vet and pay out of pocket for those important expenses. It's already done. Even when you take them to your own vet, it's relatively inexpensive since wellness visits aren't that bad (it's all the shots and procedures and extras that cost a pretty penny). Kittens (and especially, puppies) are a bit pricey at shelters. But it's really nothing compared to a breeder's. And the older the animal, the more likelihood of the cost going down. For example, Artemis was $100 less than another cat just because she had reached her 7 month mark. Kittens are most expensive, then cats 7 months and older then senior cats (over 7 years old). It's all more incentive to bring an older animal into your home.

3. Happiness: Not only are you getting a new family member, but you get to say that you helped an animal completely incapable of helping themselves. You gave an animal the chance to become a family pet. You can say you helped your local humane society by adopting and paying the adoption fees, helped your local community by getting strays off the street, and gave a four-legged friend a warm (in the winter, cool in the summer) place to nap day in and day out. How does that not equal happiness?

My cat's depressed and I think it's contagious.

I took Apollo to the vet today for her annual wellness visit which I still claim I wasn't aware cats required. I sort of just thought, indoor cats at least, took care of themselves and would never cost me anything other than the cost of food and possibly toys. Well, we're two years into these annual wellness visits and the money is adding up. Oh, the vet says I need something? I buy it. Sean assures me it's not true and that cats do, in fact, take care of themselves and that his cats growing up (he had many) just did their own thing, never got sick, didn't get their shots and still lived long, happy and healthy lives. So tell me why, oh why, do my two cats suddenly have gingivitis and require $40 medication that looks a lot like garlic powder? Why do they need a certain kind of immune vitamins? Why do they need immune vitamins? Why do they only eat certain dry food and put their nose up at food in a different shape? ...Ridiculous.

See, before today I thought it was... ridiculous. But now? After tonight's wellness visit -- I realized that was nothing. The vet casually asked "so, how's she doing?" and I had one of those panic attacks that I imagine parents of children in my class have, when I ask them questions about their child. I started with "...good." And then continued with "well, you know..." and suddenly I went into this whole long tangent about how I think she's sad. Imagine that? A sad cat? Don't they just sleep all day anyway? How can you even tell? But Apollo was very lively when we got her. She was outgoing and spunky. She did love sleeping and definitely had "her spots". She followed me around the house, and slept in our bed and relaxed on the couch. She loved her food, drank her water, played with her toys, never scratched our furniture -- she was the perfect cat. In April, we thought she needed a playmate: enter Artemis. I've tried to play off their relationship as "getting to know each other" or by saying they're just different cats and need to make adjustments. I act like they're best friends and have visions of them taking naps together and grooming each other while I'm away. The truth is Apollo can't stand Artemis and their relationship is just getting worse. Apollo ignores Artemis, stays away from her, refuses to go on any furniture Artemis has been on, no longer sleeps with us, won't eat her food if Artemis so much as breathes on it. Seriously; it's dramatic.

Do you know what the vet said to me after what was verbally probably an even longer version of what I've typed above? "She's depressed". And then he continued "she loved you so much and now she has to share you. She's anxious... and probably a little mad". Oh god. Do you know what the remedy is for a depressed cat?

A $47 (+ tax) product that is supposed to "diffuse" the situation. You plug it into the wall, it sort of looks like a febreeze air freshener, and it gives off a scent of pheromones to felines. Supposedly, in a month they'll love each other, appreciate each other and want to be around each other. And I thought dental medication and vitamins were strange. Regardless, I hope it works, because as much as I pretend I'm complaining I feel so sad that she's so sad and I'm a little nervous as to what "the next step" of improving their relationship will cost our wallet... 

A plea from our cats.

Hi guys, it's us:

We're here guest posting today to ask you something. But first that picture reminds us to let you all know that the about me page has been changed a little on this here blog. Our human mama would want us to let you know that. Now onto the important stuff.

You see... there's been some talk around these parts that our parents are going away next week. Something about some great holiday that revolves around freedom and celebration. Sounds great, right? They keep mentioning words like s'mores and drinking and camping and fire pit. They're also talking about how fun it'll be with friends, and exciting day trips and sleeping in a log cabin. It all sounds nice... in theory.

But then we got to thinking: what about us? Who is going to love us, and take care of us, and watch us over us and... feed us. That's probably the most important part. Let's face it -- we are cats, after all. We pretty much take care of ourselves as much as our human mama refuses to believe it. But the one thing we can't do? Open a can of cat food.

Now, if it was just one of us (Apollo) the automatic feeder would suffice. But the newbie (Artemis) needs wet food (something about being malnourished from the shelter... she claims). So here we are... days before the most important people in our lives are leaving -- with no plans of who is going to watch over us for those five days.

If you know us in real life then hear our plea. Let our parents know if you can feed us next week. We really don't want to end up at the kitty cottage. One of us could handle it (Apollo) but one of us will probably get flashbacks of her shelter experience and regress (Artemis).

We are lovable. We promise.

*Apollo has appeared on the blog in the past. You can find her posts here and here.

6 tips for introducing cats.

One of those posts about our cats. 

On April 16th, we brought Artemis home from the animal shelter. She was scared, starving and depressed. They think she was beaten, she was definitely neglected and her eyes had that empty look the animals in the ASPCA commercials have. You know... the look. It's so sad.

We were a little nervous about bringing home someone new because of Apollo. We weren't sure how she was going to react after being the only pet for one whole year. But I did all the researching I could about introducing two cats and Google promised me it would be okay especially because they are both female, both young enough, and because Artemis was smaller in size compared to Apollo.

I read and reread all the advice and this is the process we took for inviting Artemis (Artie) into our home without Apollo feeling like she was being bumped to the curb.

1. Prepare the environment. Before we brought her home, we set up a space in our place that would be her "area" for as long as this whole process would take. Some websites said introducing cats takes a long time (like 5-6 weeks) others just said they sort of threw the cats together and made it work. We chose not to go that route, but maybe that would work for you. In our second bedroom, we set up a bed, her food and water and a litter box.

2. Upon arrival, stick to your normal routine. When I brought her home, I immediately brought the cage in that room, set it down, opened the cage door and left the room closing the door behind me. This part is really hard to do, by the way. But websites promised it was the way to do it claiming the new cat would feel more comfortable in the room alone. And the existing cat needs to feel like nothing has changed. So I left, washed my hands, and greeted Apollo like nothing ever happened. She was oblivious.

3. Visit quickly and quietly. I stayed out of the room for a whole hour and it was torturous. But I paid attention to Apollo, made dinner and waited for Sean to get home. Once he came home from work, we went in together, closing the door behind us. To our surprise -- Google was right and she was moving around on her own, although she stopped and hid right when we walked in the room. This sort of thing happened for a while. Each time we would go in we would see her run across the room and hide. For three days, we went on like this. Quietly sneaking away from Apollo to visit with Artie. We whispered in the room with her and tried to play with her and get her to eat (neither of which we were very successful with).

The first night, I broke the rules and asked Sean to sleep in that room with her (I'm sure that's why she favors him more!) so that she wouldn't be lonely. After climbing into bed, she crawled under the covers with him and stayed there the whole night. But as for the day time routine, we stuck to it and visited minimally.

4. Wait out the hissing. Meanwhile, Apollo started to catch on. I'm sure she could probably smell Artie, but she wasn't so sure what was happening. She started stalking the doorway, and sniffing, and making strange sounds that weren't necessarily hissing but they weren't the friendliest of sounds either.

Once Apollo calmed down around the doorway, five days after bringing Artie home, we opened the door. Google told me about steps in between but they weren't practical for us. So we opened the door to see what happened. And oddly enough -- nothing. Apollo never crossed the threshold and Artie didn't dare come out of the second bedroom. On the third day of this, Apollo walked in.

5. Let them explore and don't interfere. Apollo was curious about Artie. And tried to follow her around, sniffing her when she got a chance. At times, it got a little intense and it took everything in me not to scream and become dramatic. Sean assured me they were animals and it was all normal. But some sounds... were just awful. Slowly but surely they started getting closer in proximity to one another. Of course, Apollo continually keeping the higher ground to assert her dominance. Again... it was all normal and to be expected and it was all what Google told me.

6. Give it time. By day 10, I was nervous. Artie still hadn't left the second bedroom. She wasn't exploring, she was still scared and looking very skinny -- she was barely eating. On a whim, we cracked open a can of wet food and put it down... and that was the turning point. She ate like she hadn't eaten in her whole life (which maybe she hadn't). The shelter didn't tell us what they had been feeding her and we just bought her similar food to Apollo's. But once we figured out her food habits, she changed as a kitten. I read somewhere that once your basic needs are taken care of (food, water, shelter) you're more apt to be comfortable and confident. I'm pretty sure that's what happened. 

By day 14, she still hadn't left that one room. She had all she needed in there (necessities as well as comfort items and two huge windows) but I really wanted a lap cat -- someone to watch TV with. We tried everything... moving her food just outside the room so she had to leave to eat (it didn't work), we threw her toys outside the room so she would run and forget it was a different room (it didn't work), we tried to coax her out... everything. We even picked her up and brought her out of the room (PS.. not a good idea) but she just ran right back.

On day 18, completely on her own, she walked out of the room. All by herself. And she hasn't looked back.

:)

Oh, Apollo.

Hey ladies and gents,

It's me, Apollo.

Hang on, let me peel my eyes open...

Okay, great. 

I took some time off from napping to guest post today. 

My mama and my papi are so nice to me, but they haven't formally introduced all of my amazing attributes on this here blog. I don't know why because they are always taking pictures of me and I'm a little surprised that this blog hasn't turned into a cat blog. The lady of the house has definitely turned into a cat lady. What can I say? I'm cute.

There are tons of reasons why I win over the hearts of anyone who meets me. Here's a few:

Constant Company:

I'm constant positive company. I love to follow my parents around wherever they go. It's the best. And I like to be first, so sometimes I have to cut them off and run in between their legs so I arrive at our destination before them. Sometimes they trip and they almost step on me and I have to give them "the look". It's the only time they call me "Apollo". Generally, they call me "Bubbie" or "The Bubbster". I know they're talking to me but I pretend not to hear. 

Napping Partner:

I'm a wonderful napping partner. I'm always ready to curl up on the couch with a fleece blanket and a warm body. I like the TV volume to be below 10 or else the commercials wake me up. Also, it's great when the people of the house stay still while I'm sleeping on top of them or else I have to re-position and get re-comfortable.

Laundry Initiator:

Sometimes the lady of the house slacks on the laundry. To remind her that laundry falls within her household duties I like to pull down the dish towels in an effort to spark the need to start the washing machine. She loves when I do this and she loves to chase me around the kitchen. She's so silly when she tries to catch me and she can't. I'm very quick. And strong. I like to play tug-of-war with the dish towels. She doesn't always have a smile on her face during this game but I know she loves it. Actually, now that I think about about it, I'm really good at all household chores... and I specifically love doing the dishes and climbing into the dishwasher!

Road Tripper:

I'm so great in the car. I love road trips and I love looking out the windows. My parents refuse to crack the windows even just a little because they tell me I'll try to escape. It may be true but it's just because I'm so curious. My mom keeps asking me if I "know what happened to the cat who was curious?" I don't.

Game Changer:

I'm the most amazing game player. I don't know why my parents insist on playing two person games like cards, or board games. That's an action shot of me trying to get in on their game of chess. For some reason they cleaned up after I played my move...

Jumper:

I'm the best jumper and I love to climb up high. For instance, the other night my mama looked over and I had jumped on the counter, onto the fridge, up on top of the cabinets. I got into some serious trouble and now they've "attempted" to block it off and we've apparently purchased a spray bottle [which I'm a little scared of!]. No worries though, I'm always scheming and I'm already working on a way to get around that bin. 

Alarm Clock:

I'm such a great alarm clock. I know exactly when it's time for breakfast and I do not like to miss the most important meal of the day. In fact, I know exactly when it's time to eat... every meal. And I like to meow and swat my parents as the time nears. Just in case. Actually, right before all my meals is when I like to climb on the counters, the tables, and on top of the cable box. It gets their full attention and we like to run around a few extra minutes right before I eat. That must be why I'm burning so many calories and only weigh 2.11 lbs. Oh yeah, I'm teeny!

That's my post for the day. I don't have that long of an attention span and after peeling my eyes open to guest post I'm going to need a really long nap to make up for my time... working!

See you soon!

An update.

The little one is plenty settled in. Perhaps too much so. She's found her two favorite places to relax:

On my neck & on the back of the couch.

In other areas of life, I've been pretty frantically preparing for my next seminar (about two weeks from now) & our dining room table looks less like something you would eat on and more of a smorgasbord of binders & books & documents.

We're thoroughly enjoying Redbox although we've forgotten to return these days ago and I'm just now seeing them sitting on the counter...

But anyway...

via.

I loved this movie so much. I can't believe that I waited so long to see it. I love Joseph Gordon-Levitt & Seth Rogen but I knew it would be sad and wasn't prepared to watch. I have to admit that I still wasn't ready to watch it but I'm so glad that we did. It was sad, and funny, and heartwarming and worrying! I may purchase it... or apparently just never return it back to Redbox...

via. 

This movie was definitely entertaining. It was basically a modernized "Freaky Friday" aimed for a more manly demographic. But funny. And I love Leslie Mann and anything she's in. It was a nice surprise to find out she was in this.

via.

Oh, I would love to say how we thought this movie was EXCEPT that it totally didn't work when we put it in the DVD player. It skipped every 4 seconds until Sean couldn't take it any longer. But I was very excited to watch Jonah Hill... maybe another time.

I have twenty three more days of school until the kids are out for the summer and I'm so excited! I have no idea what plans will or will not work out but I'm just so excited to sleep in a little bit, to play with Apollo, to scrapbook, to see the sun, to stay up late, catch up on so many TV shows, to travel, and just relax.

I'm anxiously counting down the days...

Apollo :)

We picked up Apollo on Saturday afternoon. Sean's friend's cat had kittens (6!) and Apollo was one of them. She's adjusting just fine. She sleeps a lot but likes to wake up at 5AM. 

Having never owned a cat, I have to say that I'm [still] a little nervous. 

They don't show affection quite like dogs. And they don't greet you at the door like a dog.

In fact, she's not even phased by us walking in the door after the entire day at all. She doesn't move.

But I enjoy not having to worry about her occupying her time [even though I still do!] when we're not home. And I don't have to worry about her having "accidents" because apparently they are born knowing how to use a litter box. Oh, and there's no barking.

She's gentle, quiet and sweet. 

I love her.

Oh, and she's 2 pounds. Two. Pounds. 

A new addition.

As of today, we have a new addition to our family.

Meet Apollo:

The three of us are getting along just fine and I must admit I'm really smitten by her already.

I think we'll be great friends.